Overview
The Cognition cluster examines how attention, cognitive control, and language experience shape real-time adaptation to variable speech input. Current projects connect behavioral performance, neurophysiological responses, and language history to explain why some participants adapt more than others in controlled laboratory settings.
Active Workstreams
- Behavioral predictors of adaptation using AX-CPT and n-back task variants.
- EEG markers of change detection and their relationship to phonetic drift.
- Comparing monolingual and bilingual participants with continuous language-experience measures.
Methods
- Behavioral paradigms: AX-CPT, n-back with lures, and adaptation tasks.
- EEG/ERP recording for mismatch and change-detection responses.
- Acoustic analysis of participant speech before and after exposure.
- Regression and mixed-effects modeling across cognitive and linguistic predictors.
Current Data (2024-2026)
- 2026: "Neural mismatches and motor shifts: MMN predicts phonetic drift" (LSA, New Orleans).
- 2024: "Reactive cognitive control, perceptual flexibility, and phonetic drift" (Psychonomic Society, New York).
- 2024: "Acoustic change detection as a predictor of phonological adaptation" (Variation and Language Processing 6, Vigo).
Funding and Grants
- 2023: Caselli, J. (VURF). "Does Perception Match Performance? Neurophysiological Correlates of Cognitive Control."
- 2022-2024: Berry, G.M., and Toscano, J.C. (Research Catalyst Grant, Villanova Institute for Research and Scholarship). "Experiential and Neurocognitive Mechanisms of Language Adaptation."
Project Snapshot
- Cluster: Cognition
- Primary outcomes: adaptation behavior, ERP responses, acoustic shift metrics
- Population: monolingual and bilingual adults
- Collaborators: Spanish and Psychological and Brain Sciences
- Recent output window: 3 conference presentations (2024-2026)
Last Updated
February 2026